Ethical Question #3

Well, here it is, the next BIG QUESTION! But first, I need to ask, how often should I post a new question? I am thinking one or two a week is good. Anyway, I guess I will just play it by ear until I get more feedback. So, here we go... "At what point does money stop making people happier and have you reached that point, yet?" I remember a time when I thought money held all of the answers. Sadly, for some folks I am related to, it seems they think it still does. When my husband and I were first married, we lived paycheck to paycheck, as many people do, and it was hard. At that time, I often thought if we just made a little more money life would be so much easier. I was wrong! Now, I am not saying we make a load of money these days. (Remember, we serve our country as military members!) As many of you know, this military thing is not some "get rich quick" scheme, more people would be knocking on recruiters' doors if that were the case! All I am saying is my husband is no longer an E-3 AND we are a dual military family now, so we do OK. Back to the question... As time has passed, I have come to realize that happiness comes in many forms and most of those have absolutely NOTHING to do with the almighty dollar! Take for instance my job as a NICU nurse. There is nothing more rewarding than being in a room when a new baby is born (you can actually feel the presence of the Lord) OR when a new father holds his baby for the first time- my all time favorite! Also, I get pure pleasure from being in the same room as my husband and kids, I could sit and soak them up for hours. I love them beyond belief!! Don't get me wrong, it is nice to not have to worry where our next meal is coming from, we can even eat out more than our fair share; but, that is NOT what makes me happy. I used to think that someday I would have my 1/2 million dollar home and my 7 carat diamond ring and all would be grand with the world. Not so anymore. All I want is for my children to be good, happy, healthy, well-adjusted adults and for my husband and I to have a good, loving relationship for many years to come.

Ethical Question #2

I have decided to post my next ethical question for those of you who enjoy a little thought provocation. I realize it has not been quite one week since the last question was posted.... I will be working the next few nights and honestly can say I am not certain when I will be able to BLOG next. So, here it is: "If you were asked by school officials if your child's best friend lived in the community and you knew the child didn't, what would you do?" Now, I happen to know that there are families in this military community who do not abide by school boundaries. My own kids go to school outside of our boundaries, but we played by the rules and requested an "exception to policy." This really sucks at times because we have to provide transportation to and from school for our children. Maybe, I should give a little background here. My husband and I chose the area we are living in very carefully. The primary reason we moved to this home was because it's location fell into the boundaries of the schools we wanted our children to attend. At the end of last school year, the district decided to re-arrange the boundaries as our son was entering his Senior year of High School and our daughter her Freshman year. Being as we are military, it is not unusual for kids to change schools frequently, but my husband and I both requested extensions at our current assignments so our son could graduate with his friends. Had we known that boundaries were going to change and he be forced to go to a new school anyway, we would have just accepted orders and moved on. So, we did the next best thing and jumped through the hoops of the school district to allow our oldest to stay with is friends at his current school. Our daughter just rode in on the coat-tails of her brother. The negative in all of this is having to provide transportation to and from school. Back to the question above... None of the re-zoning would have been an issue if parents here had been sending their children to the appropriate school in the first place. I personally knew of 3 people who had given friend's addresses to the school when registering their own kids so their kids could go to the "better" school, leading to an overcrowding situation. So, rather than have parents bring in proof of residence, the officials just re-zoned. The problem could have been solved so much easier if they had just asked me what to do... but they didn't so I will just BLOG about them ;) So... Yes, I would inform the school officials of the truth. WHY? Because it is the right thing to do and so that future parents won't have to experience what my family has had to go through! Also, since the parents are going through the motions anyway, they may as well do it legally!

Ethical Question #1

As promised, here is the first question for your consideration: "Do you feel a sense of responsibility for influencing other people's morals?" I look forward to hearing some of your responses!!